Emma Lovell Yoga

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The best way to breathe…

Posted on October 13, 2016 7:48 pm by Emma

‘The best way to breathe is the way that supports the activity that you are doing.’  Donna Farhi, The Breathing Book.

Kiki Smith – Ribs, 1987, terracotta, ink, and thread

It’s been all about the rib cage and breath in class this week.  Specifically focusing on how we are breathing with the thoracic cavity and aiming to create space and awareness in this area for a better quality breath.  Here’s biomechanist Katy Bowman explaining the mechanics of breathing and how the way you breathe affects the different pressure systems in the body:

Here are some movements you might want to try at home to help create space and release tension in this area:

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Side stretch

Walk hands and feet over to one side making sure pelvis and ribs don’t roll with you (they stay level).  You can cross one ankle over the other and take your wrist to make the stretch stronger.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Pec/chest stretch

Lay on your back and bend your right knee up roll it to the left until the knee and foot are on the floor.  Keeping the leg in place, reach your right arm up to the ceiling.  Slightly bend your elbow and then slowly lower the arm behind you.  Imagine your arm is drawing away from you as you lower.  You can move the arm up towards your ear or down towards your hip to find the best stretch for you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Chest opener

Place a rolled blanket or yoga mat under the upper back.  The blanket should come out under the armpits and shoulders release to floor.  Add a blanket under the head and neck if needed.

 

 

 

Some more tips for better breathing:

Here’s a great video from Jenni Rawlings which aims to optimise rib cage breathing.

Consider your wardrobe- make sure your clothing isn’t restricting how you breathe- think tight waist bands, belts, ties, in fact any clothing that restricts your movement full stop is bad news for the breath.

Consider your belly- are you holding your belly in right now?  Contrary to what is often thought, constantly holding your belly in will actually cause the muscles to weaken rather than strengthen, and like any muscle that is never allowed to relax, will eventually cause a reduction in function.  Not only this, but constantly holding in your belly increases tension in the body and restricts your breath as the abdominal muscles are unable to move freely (among other unpleasant side-effects):

‘Most people have replaced deep, abdominal activity with “sucking their stomach in.” The belief held by most is that “sucking it in” constantly uses one’s abdominal muscles, but really, the sucking-in motion creates a pressure (like creating a vacuum) that pulls the abdomen’s contents up (not in). It doesn’t do anything for core strength (except weaken it over time) or back health (increases the loads placed on the intervertebral disks).’ Katy Bowman

Happy breathing!




Low back sequence

Posted on August 25, 2015 12:51 pm by Emma

A sequence for a tired and achy low back.  You will need:

A wall

A strap/belt

A block/cushion

A bolster (optional)

1. Begin in legs up the wall pose.  If you don’t have wall space you can place your calves on the edge of a bed or chair.

2. Then press feet to the wall and bend knees to peel the back of the body off the floor and down again.

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3. Reclined pigeon with wall

4. Easeful rest pose then roll knees from side to side keeping feet hip width.

5. Supta padangusthasana- press the ball of the foot up into a belt, then turn your foot away from you and take the leg out to the side, making sure both sides of the pelvis stay level on the floor.

5. Balasana (option with bolster/cushion between legs).  Place a block under the head if the forehead doesn’t reach the floor.

 

6. Cat and cow

7. Sphinx pose

8. Supported bridge (make sure block is placed under pelvis rather than low back).

 

9. Reclined twist

10. Savasana




Bones

Posted on August 12, 2015 7:37 am by Emma

Here’s an article from Todd Hargrove explaining why and how our skeletal structure affects our movement and why an individualised approach is so important in exercise, rather than forcing each body into ‘some Platonic ideal’: ‘Optimal alignment or posture for a certain function is partly a result of having as many joints in neutral as possible at any one time. And the shape of the bones will determine how many of your joints you can keep in neutral at the same time in a particular functional task…we should be very wary about anyone dictating to us what proper form is in regard to a particular activity without considering our individual variations in structure.‘ Full article here

Here are some very clear illustrations of anatomical variations in pelvic and femur structure- a squat for these two individuals will (and should) look very different:Pic 1

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Images from here

 




Individual practice

Posted on July 22, 2015 4:14 pm by Emma

A couple of articles here on the changing approaches to yoga.  First, the brilliant Matthew Remski writing about  ‘extreme practice and injury in asana’ and also touching on the online trend of posting pictures of extreme yoga poses which, for most of us, are completely inaccessible.

‘Pattabhi Jois was fond of the adage, “With enough heat, even iron will bend”. But this new rationalist yoga discourse imposes clearer limits upon the aspirational body, insisting that muscles do not get “longer”, and pain is not an “opening” – except in a pathological sense. The primal dream of bodily transformation through “being worked into a noodle”, as Jois student Annie Pace described it, is being eclipsed by the simpler goal of enhancing a natural range of motion for functional movement.’ See more here.

 

On a similar note, Jenni Rawlings discusses how our different body proportions affect our practice, stressing the importance of moving away from the ‘one-pose fits all’ approach in yoga, which can force the body into shapes that could cause injury by focusing on the aesthetics of the pose:

‘In the yoga world, we often conceive of asanas as having one final form that we are all striving to “achieve” or “finish.” But when we learn to appreciate the role that our unique body proportions play in what our specific yoga poses look like (or how hard we might be working in our shapes), we can start to broaden our notion of what it means to “progress” in yoga practice. Ultimately, our top priority in any asana should be for the shape to serve the individual body performing it; how the pose looks will then be a natural byproduct of that goal.’  For the full article see here

 




Home practice

Posted on April 21, 2015 1:23 pm by Emma

We’ve been exploring practicing yoga at home this week.  Many people find once they have been attending a regular yoga class for  a while they want to start putting what they have learnt into practice at home.  But where to start?

Practicing yoga at home is really different from going to a class, and it can be a really hard thing to get motivated to do.  You don’t have a teacher telling you what to do or guiding you through a carefully sequenced class.  It’s just you and your body and a load of postures you’re not even sure you have right!  I know I have struggled to build up a regular home practice in the past, mainly because I told myself I didn’t have the time or a quiet enough space in which to do so.  Here are some tips and ideas I’ve learnt from teachers and my own practice that may help inspire you to get on your mat:

– Before you start, ask yourself what you need from your practice at that moment– it will be different every day.  Perhaps you have a sore neck and so make that your focus of your movements.  Maybe you feel tired and so want a more restorative practice, or maybe because you’re tired you’d like to feel more energized and so a bit of handstand practice or sun salutations would work.  

– Listen to your body and don’t force yourself to practice something you don’t want to; your practice shouldn’t be a chore to get through, but something enjoyable:

‘We’re trying to make our life listen to our practice. So let your practice conform to your life. Don’t make it something outside the boundaries of where you are and what you’re feeling and what you’re needing.‘ Read Judith Lasater’s full interview on home practice here– it has some really useful tips.

– Home practice doesn’t have to be long, some days it may be 5 minutes, other days you might find you have been practicing for over an hour.  It also doesn’t have to take place in an ‘appropriate’ quiet space.  Although it can be nice to dedicate a space just for your practice, some days I like to practice out in the garden, with all the distractions that go with that.  Other days there might be lots of noise/people around the house, and some days I may not even have a mat with me.   It’s about being creative with what you’ve got.  Instead of trying to shut them out, work with the distractions and see what comes up in your body and thoughts as you practice- you may even find that your focus improves as a result.

– Get familiar with the basic poses and maybe just practice one or two poses a day.  Don’t worry about ‘doing it right’-  as long as you are not in pain, just go with the pose as you know it – notice how it feels for your body- what would make it better, what could you soften.  Keep asking questions.  As you become more familiar with the poses, you may then start building them into sequences.  Another idea is to practice a sequence from the class you attended that week (see below for some of the more familiar sequences that we practice in class).

– As you practice, observe and listen to the body.  Notice what shapes the body prefers/doesn’t prefer. Notice what your favourite pose is and what your least favourite pose is.  Notice the habitual patterns you hold in the body- do you always step back to downward dog with the same leg?  Is one leg easier to balance on than the other?  For every pose see if there is something you can take away or soften, something you don’t need (e.g clenching your toes in tree pose, holding in your belly in tadasana).  As you become more aware of the body and its patterns it will be easier to tune in and see what you need from your practice at that moment.

– Explore, experiment, and have fun!  Remember that it doesn’t matter what you look like it the shape, it’s how it feels- play around with the shapes, make mistakes.

– Keep it simple.  You don’t have to plan elaborate sequences or try and get yourself in the most extreme shape you can.  Listen to your body and go from there. Home practice for you today may just be sitting on a cushion and listening to your breath.

 

Here are a few sequences for you to try at home (they should be pretty familiar if you come to my classes already):

1. Tadasana (mountain pose), Uttanasana (forward fold), Ardo mukha svanasana (downward dog), Malasana (squat), ardo mukha svanasana, uttanasana, tadasana,

2. Tadasana, uttanasana, ardha uttanasana (half forward fold), right leg step back to low lunge, ardo mukha svanasana, right leg step forward to lunge, ardha uttanasana, uttanasana, tadasana.  Repeat on left side.

3. Balasana (child’s pose), cat/cow, bhujangasana (cobra), ardo mukha svanasana (downward dog), plank, balasana. Repeat.




The moon

Posted on October 9, 2014 1:58 pm by Emma

Since we’ve had a full moon this week (and a lunar eclipse), here are some moon related bits.

  Chandra namaskar (moon salutations).  We practiced this moon salutation in one of the classes I attend this week and I was reminded how balancing, opening and calming it is.  Often neglected in favour of the more powerful and heat generating sun salutations, chandra namaskar are more soothing and can be nicer to do later in the day. 

For those interested, this book gives a pretty good historical overview of all things moon related:




Virasana

Posted on August 27, 2014 7:58 pm by Emma

I have been teaching Virasana a lot in classes these last few weeks.  It’s a great pose for lengthening quadriceps and ‘helps the knees is by bringing them through their complete range of flexion, nourishing joint surfaces that might otherwise be neglected.’  However many students can find this pose uncomfortable due to tightness in ankles, hips, or more importantly because they have a knee injury.

This is an informative article on what is going on in Virasana and whether you should or shouldn’t practice the pose with a knee injury.  And this is a great article on how to practice Virasana safely.  To summarise:

– Don’t force

– Go slowly

– Avoid pain

– Keep feet inline with shins

– Avoid overstretching the knees

– Keep ankles near the hips

– Use props!  If needed sit up on blocks or use a blanket/stick between the back of the knees as below, or use a blanket under the ankles  if sitting on the heels.




Shoulder stand

Posted on October 30, 2013 8:49 pm by Emma

 

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Shoulder stand is a great pose for fatigue, stress, and digestion.  As well as this, it stretches the shoulders and neck and helps tone the legs and buttocks.  

And if you needed more convincing BKS Iyengar says: ‘The importance of Sarvangasana cannot be overemphasized. It is one of the greatest boons conferred on humanity by our ancient sages… It is no over-statement to say that if a person regularly practices Sarvangasana he will feel new vigour and strength, and will be happy and confident. New life will flow into him, his mind will be at peace and he will feel the joy of life.’ BKS Iyengar, Light on Yoga

Definitely a pose to practice daily.  Use a blanket under the shoulders protects the neck.  You can also use a wall to come into the pose if having trouble rolling up (start in legs up the wall pose):mbd106235_1010_shouldersp1_hd

 Images found here and here.